New Straits Times Online, 6 December 2012
KUALA LUMPUR: THIRTY-TWO wannabe "chefs" recently battled it out at the inaugural Battle of the Aspiring Chefs at Felda Villa Restaurant in Anjung Felda, here.
The competition, similar to the reality show Masterchef Malaysia, was organised by the Occupational Safety and Health Department (DOSH) of Felda Holdings Bhd in collaboration with the organisation's all female non-governmental organisation, Suri.
Themed Creating Healthy Food to Live Well, Work and Play, the programme was held in conjunction with the Maal Hijrah Carnival 2012.
Felda's female employees and Universiti Teknologi Malaysia (UTM) students took part in the event, which was sponsored by Columbia Asia Hospital.
Felda DOSH head Mazatul Aishah Aziz said the campaign was aimed at promoting healthy recipes and encouraging Felda staff to practice healthier eating habits.
"We at DOSH are responsible for training our staff on safety and health aspects in the work place. Previously, we had several safety campaigns on transport and logistics. Today, we are concentrating on the health aspects, particularly food," said Mazatul.
"This campaign is also to turn the spotlight on non-communicable diseases such as diabetes, heart failure and cancers which have a link to dietary habits.
"Studies show that most of our meals contain too much sugar, salt, fat and colouring. One of the proactive measures to tackle this problem is to practice healthy eating.
"We invited the Columbia Asia chef to teach the contestants ways to prepare healthy yet delicious meals," she said.
The participants were divided into 16 groups with two members each. They were given four recipes -- grilled chicken with ratatouille, grilled fish with lemon sauce and asparagus, spicy chicken curry in yogurt sauce and chicken cashew nuts. Each group was required to cook two dishes.
The recipes were taken from the menu served at Columbia Asia hospitals.
The event kicked off with a 10-minute cooking demonstration by Columbia Asia kitchen executive Mohd Yusof Norsani, who demonstrated the right technique of cooking the grilled chicken with ratatouille in a healthy way.
Prior to the cooking competition, contestants were given five minutes to collect their provisions at a special "pantry".
The contestants were given 45 minutes to prepare their dishes. The entries were judged based on healthy ingredients, taste, presentation, cleanliness, time management and creativity.
They were all monitored by professional judges -- Yusof, celebrity chef Anuar Deraman and Felda D'Saji Restaurant chef Salmiah Ahmad.
"People often think that food served in hospitals are tasteless and less appetising. Actually, you can still prepare healthy food that is delicious," said Yusof.
"From our assessment, most of the meals prepared by the contestants surprisingly did not meet the requirements as most of them were salty.
"It is important to know what ingredients you add into your meal. If you put certain amounts of tomato or chilli sauce in your food, it's not necessary to add salt because these sauces already have salt. Another way of preparing healthy food is by using olive oil," he added.
At the end of the battle, UTM undergraduates Sunarti Ahmad, 32, and Siti Nurzawani Zakaria, 25, emerged as the winners of the Battle of the Aspiring Chefs.
Their grilled chicken with ratatouille and spicy chicken curry in yogurt sauce won the hearts of the judges.
"We didn't expect to win as we just joined this competition for fun. We wanted to gain some experience through this culinary event.
"We prepared a balanced meal with minimum amounts of salt and sugar. This programme trained us to prepare healthy food," said Sunarti.
"I'm grateful that I won this competition. I can add this win in my portfolio," said Siti Nurzawani.
The first-prize winners walked away with a microwave oven while the second- and third-prize winners won a blender and coffee maker, respectively.
